Digital cameras are used by a growing number of consumer and professional photographers to capture and share pictures and videos. These cameras typically use one or more CCD or CMOS image sensors to capture images. The captured images are digitally processed to produce digital image files that are stored in a digital memory in the camera, typically on a removable memory card. These digital image files can then be transferred to a host computer where they can be shared, for example via E-mail or social networking websites.
Some digital cameras provide a user interface where a user can designate certain captured digital images for sharing. Typically, the user is allowed to designate one or more destinations (recipients) for the shared digital images. The designated destinations can include E-mail addresses, picture sharing websites, social networking websites or digital picture frames. To support this feature, digital image sharing software can be installed on the host computer to automatically perform file transfers and sharing operations according to the designated sharing destinations recorded in the digital camera. The digital image sharing software and digital camera interact to complete the file transfers and sharing operations when the digital camera is connected to the host computer.
The principle shortcomings in the above interaction is that the digital image sharing software must be installed on the host computer prior to the digital camera connection. Typically, the digital image sharing software can be installed using installation disks supplied with the digital camera or can be downloaded from a website.
Some recent digital cameras have been provided with a capability to automatically initiate the installation of the photo sharing software the first time the digital camera is connected to a host computer. Notably, the KODAK EASYSHARE M530 Digital Camera incorporates this feature. After the digital camera has initiated installation of the photo sharing software on a host computer, the configuration of the digital camera is altered so that the next time it is connected to a host computer it will connect in a mode where digital images can be transferred from the digital camera to the host. Therefore, if the digital camera is connected to a second host computer, the photo sharing software will not be automatically installed and the user must manually initiate the installation process, thus making it inconvenient to share images using multiple host computers. Therefore, there remains a need for a convenient method to automatically install photo sharing software on multiple host computers.